Do you guys get that high when you complete a piece and stage it for photos?? That's where I am right now! I picked up this incredible dining set off Facebook marketplace. It caught my eye because of the pedestal base and the interesting chairs, it was a heck of a deal too! Ignore the fruit on the top...yes, hand painted fruit!! 🍊🍎🍋 This dining set is asking for a DIY Weathered Wood Makeover!
I don't do many dining sets, my workspace just doesn't accommodate them. A dining set must be fully assembled to redo a table top. I work in half of my two car garage, so you can imagine, things like dining tables and huge hutches are just impossible.
I needed this one to stage a home for sale, so I snagged it. At first sight, my mind ran to that one Pinterest pic we all have saved. You know the one, the Restoration Hardware look with the same pedestal base? That beautiful weathered wood look was my finish inspiration!
Materials list:
Furniture Cleaner
Paint in Drop Cloth, Gravel Road, Hurricane Gray, and Caviar
Satin clear coat top coat
Good quality synthetic bristle Brushes
The set was in really good condition, really no damage to fix. I started by removing the chair cushions and cleaning well. The first step in this finish was a clean coat of Drop Cloth. I did 2 coats for even coverage and to get rid of that fruit. 🍊🍇🍓
I let each coat dry overnight. The next step is a thin streaky coat of Gravel Road. Gravel Road is interesting because in the container it is a deep gray with a slight brown undertone, but when thinned, you can really see the brown in it. I accomplished this by misting my surface with water and brushing on a thin layer. To get more streaking, so the white would peek through, I came back with a dry paint brush and brushed through it again.
I liked this as a start, but it needed more. Layers, Layers, Layers! Once this dried, I put a clear coat over it just to preserve this base as I added more colors.
After the clear coat had dried, my next step was a wash of Hurricane Gray. I did the wash by misting my surface with water and putting on a thin layer of the gray, then wiping it back to preserve the streaky look. This toned down the brown and added a nice gray tone.
By the time I got done with the wash on the table and all chairs, my first piece was just about dry. I grabbed a wide and course wallpaper brush and started dry brushing in streaks of Caviar. I like the coarse brush because it gives texture to the dry brushing. I did all pieces with streaks of Caviar, then came back and did the same thing with Drop Cloth to do add streaks of white.
The thought behind the layering of colors is that weathered wood would have unevenness and variation in color, maybe traces of old paint in spots.
The seats were covered in a hideous red and olive striped fabric, it had to go. I stripped them down and found beautiful woven seat bases underneath. This set is incredibly well constructed. I had a vision in my head for what the fabric should look like. I found this Waverly upholstery fabric at Joanns and loved that it tied in the grays and beiges with a nice botanical print and even hints of metallic. I covered all chairs using a staple gun, clean folded edges, and even a base to hide the seat construction, no detail left undone.
In the end, I think I out RH'd, Restoration Hardware! The whole process took about a week, working on it for a few hours each day.
This set is solid wood, really nice quality, and has a modern, neutral weathered wood finish. What do you think?
